Breathe Easy

One of the Commands of Pilates is breathing in coordination with your movements. Pilates protocol requires that you breath into the lower lobes of the lungs through your back. I teach this tenet in my classes. The teaching materials inform us that propper breathing with movement continuously delivers oxygen to hard working muscles.  But breathing does so much more than that. It actually increases lung capacity and strength. I stopped smoking cigarettes 30 years ago but my lungs still struggled to keep up during exertion. After 3 years of continuous Pilates training, my lung capacity even supports me in running and P90. Add good, deep breathing to your workout (you can hear me breathing in China) to rolling back your shoulders and reaching your head away from your shoulders, and you'll  increase your lung capacity and stamina for whatever task you do. Another benefit is the mood elevation that comes from focused breathing. I remember my first Pilates workout like it was yesterday. I left thinking two things: that I knew I had worked hard yet felt so, so good and that my mood was buoyant. Wondrous! Last, but not least, Pilates breathing has kept me illness free for the entire time I've practiced it. I used to get regular sinus infections and occasional  GI tract viruses. Now, I don't.  Zero. I know it sounds outlandish but it is true. I think that Pilates breathing efficiently rids the body of waste and delivers increased oxygenated blood to the imune system. I'm not a doctor but I know what's happened to me. If you will notice your own shallow breaths and catch yourself holding your breath frequently, you'll see how oxygen deprived you might be. Get to Pilates and start to breath easy again!